“Does he have any next of kin in the area?”
“I think his mom lives in Fort Lauderdale.”
“What about his father?”
“He said his dad took off when he was a kid. I don’t think he’s spoken to him since.”
“Did he seem different or strange after Eden’s death?”
“He was strange before her death. Pretty messed up after.”
Distant sirens drew near. Soon, first responders swarmed the boat. Dietrich snapped photos, and forensic investigators documented the scene. Brenda examined the remains.
I caught the sheriff up to speed on everything.
“Do we have a time of death?” the sheriff asked.
“I’d say between midnight and 2:00 AM,” Brenda replied. “I’ll know more when I get him back to the lab.”
We searched the rest of the boat, but couldn't find any laptops or tablets that might have any evidence of money laundering. Whoever killed Ethan had taken Jeremy's laptop as well. It was one of the things he noted missing. He said it didn’t look like anything else aboard the boat had been taken. This certainly wasn’t a robbery.
Brenda and her crew bagged the body. By the time we transferred the remains to the dock, Paris Delaney and her crew were on the scene.
A crowd of curious neighbors had gathered.
"Deputy Wild, is that Ethan Rexrode?”
"I can’t release the name of the deceased until the next of kin has been notified."
Paris had obviously connected registration records on the boat to the owner. She didn't miss much.
I made a call for witnesses to contact the Sheriff's Department, then stepped out of frame. JD and I canvassed the area, talking to neighbors, hoping to find someone who had seen anything.
No such luck.
Ethan’s body was transferred into the medical examiner's van, and the crowd soon dissipated.
JD and I stopped in the manager's office and asked for the security footage.
The cute brunette behind the counter asked, "What happened?"
I gave her limited details.
She invited us around the counter and pulled up the security feeds on her computer. We watched the large flatscreen as she scrolled through the timeline.
At 1:35 AM, two men hurried through the parking lot. They were well-built guys, probably mid-20s to mid-30s. They wore baseball caps, sunglasses, and surgical masks. Long-sleeve shirts covered their arms, and gloves eliminated fingerprints. They were smart enough to park somewhere else and walk through the parking lot.
One of them was a little taller and thinner and walked with a slight limp. Looked like a hip or knee issue.
We picked them up on another angle as they walked down the dock. The two thugs boarded the Obsession and banged on the salon door. It was dark, and the footage was grainy. Even though it was a high-definition camera, the resolution was blocky at night in low light.
After the two thugs kept banging on the salon door, a light flicked on in the salon, and Ethan ambled toward the aft deck. He opened the door, and words were exchanged. They argued for a bit, then the two gentlemen pushed their way in. It seemed like Ethan knew them.
We kept watching the footage.
From the angle of the camera, it was hard to see into the salon. The thugs stayed aboard the boat for about 10 or 15 minutes before leaving. They walked back down the dock, crossed the parking lot, and stepped out of frame.
I asked Sophia to export the footage and send it to my phone. She did, and I forwarded it to the sheriff.
